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A few months ago I wrote a post on invasive species in Finland, and in particular on the North American beaver (Castor canadensis). I received a comment on how it is bold (or maybe the commenter meant reckless) to say that almost all invasive species are threatening the native species of the region. I began thinking of this comment, and tried to find some studies that proved that invasive species are beneficial for the subject ecosystem. Unfortunately, I only came up with sad tales. One very devastating example of invasive species is the Hawaiian Islands.

The Hawaiian Islands in the center of the Pacific Ocean are one of the most isolated islands in the world. Their endemic terrestrial species originate from some hundred species that migrated thousands of kilometers over the Pacific Ocean during several millions of years. Because of the immigration bottleneck and isolated evolution, the Hawaiian Islands have become a place for numerous distinctive and fascinating species. But it has also made the fauna and flora of the islands very vulnerable to various disturbances, such as human invasion and human-mediated invasions.

Nowadays almost a quarter of Hawaiian terrestrial species are non-native. Birds have probably suffered the most. Previously there were 11 native goose species in the Hawaiian Islands, but nowadays only one species is left: the nene (Branta sandvicensis), also known as the Hawaiian goose. The same has also happened to the native duck species; just two duck species are left (the Hawaiian duck, Anas wyvilliana and the Laysan duck, Anas laysanensis).

The main reasons for these extinctions are introduced predators (e.g. the feral cat and mongoose), and feral and game species (e.g. the mouflon, Axis deer and feral pig). There are almost 60 studies on domestic ungulates, but none have demonstrated any positive effects of them on native species. Ungulates stimulate the growth of grass among other things, leading to more grasses and less forest. And all this changes the light regime and fire resistance of an ecosystem. Grazing is therefore destructive to Hawaiian forests and to every native organism living in them. It has also been proven that the invasive vertebrate species of Hawaii have facilitated at least 33 invasive plant species. In addition to damages caused by grazing, feral pigs alter nutrient cycling and accelerate soil erosion.

There is still some light at the end of the tunnel, although it might be rather dim. The public has come to aid in the eradication of many species. Scientists and wildlife managers have concurrently begun multi-scale population monitoring, which includes aerial and ground-based visual surveys as well as trail cameras. To intensify and simplify the eradications even further, several hundred kilometers of management fences have been constructed. As an outcome of this some success stories have emerged; the eradication of rabbits and feral goats. Furthermore, the midway islands of Hawaii are now rat and non-native mammal free!

Unfortunately, it has been too late for some Hawaiian ecosystems. A key threshold has been crossed in some regions, and recovery of certain ecosystems may not be possible any longer. The populations of illegally introduced axis deer (Axis axis) have been reduced to some dozens, but their eventual eradication has been problematic, because assessing the number of remaining deers on private properties has proved difficult. The axis deer was introduced to provide game, so private properties owned by hunters act as reservoirs for the deer, from where they can be disperse to clean areas.

To conclude, I still dare say that almost all invasive species threaten native species. Even though some invasive species don’t harm all native species, we are always looking at nature as a complex ecosystem consisting of several species and functions. When introducing an alien species, we will always alter the pristine ecosystem.